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Poultry allowed to roam free again
MICHAEL POLLITT, RURAL AFFAIRS EDITOR
02 March 2007 08:26
Free-range-poultry keepers across a large swathe of Norfolk and Suffolk were allowed to let their birds outside yesterday for the first time in almost four weeks.
Restrictions imposed by Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) to control the H5N1 avian-flu outbreak were lifted from 806 sq miles of Norfolk and east Suffolk at 2pm.
The requirement to house poultry and waterfowl was lifted following checks on about 148 farms in the area from Yarmouth to Norwich and down the A140 towards Ipswich and the coast. A further 64 dead wild birds were also tested for signs of avian flu.
Free-range-poultry farmer Roger Mobbs, who runs a 12,000 flock of laying hens, was delighted that the restrictions have finally been lifted.
He was required to house all his chickens from February 3 when Defra imposed a range of measures to prevent the spread of the first major outbreak of the potentially-lethal H5N1 avian-flu virus in Britain. It was confirmed in four flocks of eight-week-old turkeys at the Bernard Matthews farm at Holton and all 159,000 birds on the unit were destroyed.
?I will be much happier when I know that I can let the birds out.
?Our hens have actually been producing very clean eggs because they have not been able to get outside and get their feet muddy,? said Mr Mobbs, of Cantley Farm, Cratfield, near Halesworth.
?We will be able to leave all the pop holes open which we do all the time. We have a very good fence to keep out predators like foxes,? he added.
Norfolk farmers' leader Bob Young also welcomed the decision, which will let the industry start to return to normal.
Specialist poultry auctioneer Fabian Eagle, who runs the weekly poultry market at Swaffham on Saturday, said that easing the restrictions will make it easier to run other sales.
He has a special sale of game rearing birds and pheasants on March 11 at Eldon Farm, Hollywell, near Mildenhall. And poultry enthusiasts can also enter birds for his annual spring sale on April 1.
Deputy chief veterinary officer Fred Landeg said: ?This is a positive step that has resulted from our work to stamp out the disease. However, we cannot afford to be complacent. ?We must remain vigilant and I must stress again how important it is for poultry keepers to practise good bio-security.?
Restrictions remain in force in the 10km surveillance zone and the wider restricted zone until formally lifted by Defra, which include bans on bird gatherings and auctions.
http://new.edp24.co.uk/content/news...gory=news&itemid=NOED02 Mar 2007 08:26:06:077
MICHAEL POLLITT, RURAL AFFAIRS EDITOR
02 March 2007 08:26
Free-range-poultry keepers across a large swathe of Norfolk and Suffolk were allowed to let their birds outside yesterday for the first time in almost four weeks.
Restrictions imposed by Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) to control the H5N1 avian-flu outbreak were lifted from 806 sq miles of Norfolk and east Suffolk at 2pm.
The requirement to house poultry and waterfowl was lifted following checks on about 148 farms in the area from Yarmouth to Norwich and down the A140 towards Ipswich and the coast. A further 64 dead wild birds were also tested for signs of avian flu.
Free-range-poultry farmer Roger Mobbs, who runs a 12,000 flock of laying hens, was delighted that the restrictions have finally been lifted.
He was required to house all his chickens from February 3 when Defra imposed a range of measures to prevent the spread of the first major outbreak of the potentially-lethal H5N1 avian-flu virus in Britain. It was confirmed in four flocks of eight-week-old turkeys at the Bernard Matthews farm at Holton and all 159,000 birds on the unit were destroyed.
?I will be much happier when I know that I can let the birds out.
?Our hens have actually been producing very clean eggs because they have not been able to get outside and get their feet muddy,? said Mr Mobbs, of Cantley Farm, Cratfield, near Halesworth.
?We will be able to leave all the pop holes open which we do all the time. We have a very good fence to keep out predators like foxes,? he added.
Norfolk farmers' leader Bob Young also welcomed the decision, which will let the industry start to return to normal.
Specialist poultry auctioneer Fabian Eagle, who runs the weekly poultry market at Swaffham on Saturday, said that easing the restrictions will make it easier to run other sales.
He has a special sale of game rearing birds and pheasants on March 11 at Eldon Farm, Hollywell, near Mildenhall. And poultry enthusiasts can also enter birds for his annual spring sale on April 1.
Deputy chief veterinary officer Fred Landeg said: ?This is a positive step that has resulted from our work to stamp out the disease. However, we cannot afford to be complacent. ?We must remain vigilant and I must stress again how important it is for poultry keepers to practise good bio-security.?
Restrictions remain in force in the 10km surveillance zone and the wider restricted zone until formally lifted by Defra, which include bans on bird gatherings and auctions.
http://new.edp24.co.uk/content/news...gory=news&itemid=NOED02 Mar 2007 08:26:06:077